| − | The '''Gospel of Luke''' is called "the most beautiful book ever written."<ref>See, e.g., [[NRSV]] Study Bible at 1502.</ref> It is the first historian's account of the life of [[Jesus]], as written in perfect [[Greek]].<ref>The Gospel of Luke is the finest [[Greek]] among [[the Gospels]], while the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]] is the finest Greek in all of literature.</ref> Luke did not claim to be an eyewitness, but instead one who has "carefully investigated everything from the beginning" ({{bible ref|Luke|1|3}}) who wanted to "write an orderly account" so that the Greek man Theophilus (or the entire world, as the name means "loved by [[God]]") would "know the certainty of the things" he had been taught. (Luke 1:3-4) The author Luke was a [[Gentile]], as confirmed by [[Paul]] at [[Colossians]] 4:11,14. The Gospel of Luke is the 3rd and longest [[the Gospel|Gospel]] (indeed, the longest book in the entire [[New Testament]]), placed after [[Gospel of Matthew|Matthew]] and [[Gospel of Mark|Mark]] and before the [[Gospel of John]]. [[Papyrus 4]] and [[Papyrus 75]] are two early surviving scrolls of this Gospel. | + | The '''Gospel of Luke''' is called "the most beautiful book ever written."<ref>See, e.g., [[NRSV]] Study Bible at 1502.</ref> It is the first historian's account of the life of [[Jesus]], as written in perfect [[Greek]].<ref>The Gospel of Luke is the finest [[Greek]] among [[the Gospels]], while the [[Epistle to the Hebrews]] is the finest Greek in all of literature.</ref> Luke did not claim to be an eyewitness, but instead one who has "carefully investigated everything from the beginning" ({{bible ref|Luke|1|3}}) who wanted to "write an orderly account" so that the Greek man Theophilus (or the entire world, as the name means "loved by [[God]]") would "know the certainty of the things" he had been taught. (Luke 1:3-4) The author Luke was a [[Gentile]], as confirmed by [[Paul]] at [[Colossians]] 4:11,14. The Gospel of Luke is the 3rd and longest [[the Gospel|Gospel]] (indeed, the longest book in the entire [[New Testament]]), placed after [[Gospel of Matthew|Matthew]] and [[Gospel of Mark|Mark]] and before the [[Gospel of John]]. [[Papyrus 4]] and [[Papyrus 75]] are two early surviving scrolls of this Gospel. Luke implies the existence of [[Gospels]] before his in {{bibleref|Luke|1|1-3}}: "Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the things that have been accomplished among us ... it seemed good to me ... to write an orderly account." |
| | The witnesses to [[Jesus]] on the road to Emmaus were not any of [[the Apostles]] or [[Mark]], and thus only the historian (Luke) could describe that encounter. | | The witnesses to [[Jesus]] on the road to Emmaus were not any of [[the Apostles]] or [[Mark]], and thus only the historian (Luke) could describe that encounter. |
| − | Luke may have been inspired by the [[Epistles to the Hebrews]], which is perhaps the best-written Greek work in all of history, and which some of Luke's writings (especially parts of the [[Acts of the Apostles]]) appear to imitate in style and word choice. Luke is considered one of the [[synoptic gospels]] and Luke is generally considered to have borrowed from Mark as one of his sources, as did Matthew. It is unknown if Matthew or Luke borrowed from each other or which came first; some material is common to Matthew and Luke but not found in Mark. | + | Luke was probably inspired by the [[Epistles to the Hebrews]], which is perhaps the best-written Greek work in all of history, and which some of Luke's writings (especially parts of the [[Acts of the Apostles]]) appear to imitate in style and word choice. Luke is considered one of the [[synoptic gospels]] and Luke is generally considered to have borrowed from Mark as one of his sources, as did Matthew. It is unknown if Matthew or Luke borrowed from each other or which came first; some material is common to Matthew and Luke but not found in Mark. |